The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-03-02
tho swinging of a great gloom all

there is q dead one in the house you DOW Cue
shutters or turn the lattice, so God in the az
. it is appropriate to throw black pail upon
the coffin as it passes along, so it was appro-
pirate that everything should be sombre that
day as the great hearse of the earth rolled on,
bearing the corpse of the King.
A mans last hours are ordinarily kept
sacred. However you may have hated or
caricatureda a man, when you hear he is dying
would have loathing for the man who
could stand by a death-bed making faces
and Bcoffing But Christ in His last
hour cannot be left alone. What!
pursuing Him yet after SO long pursuit.
You have been drinking His tears, do you
want to drink his blood! They came up
closely, so that, Notwithstanding tho dark
contortions Of his countenance. They exam
inc his feet They want to feel for them.
selves whether those feet are really spiked
They put out their hands and touch the
spikes, and bring them back wet with blood,
and wipe them on their garments.
Women stand there and weep, but can do
no good 1T no place for tender-hearted wo.
men. 1t wants heart that crime has turned
into granite. The waves of mans hatred
and Of hells vengeance dash up against
the mangled feet, and the hands Of sin and
pain and torture clutch for His holy heart
Had He not been thoroughly fastened to the
cross they would have torn Him down aud
trampled Him with both feet. How the
cavalry horses arched their necEs, and
champed their bits, and reared and snuffed
at the blood. Had a Roman officer called
out for light his voice would not have been
heard in tho tumult; but louder than the
clash Of the spears, and the wailing OF
womanhood, and the neighing of the oharg-
ers, and the believing Of the crlciherS.
there comes voice crashing through, loud,
clear, overwhelming, terrific. 1t is the groau
Of the dying Son Of God. Lookl What
scene! Look, oh world. at what yon have
treated Christ to let you count the wounds
and estimate tho cost Oh. when the nails
went through Christ's right hand and
Christ's left hand-that brought both your
hands with all their power to wo:k, and
lift, and write. When the nail went
through Christs right foot and Christ's
left foot-that bought your feet, with all
their power to walk, or run, or climb.
When the thorn went into Christ's temple
that bought your brain with all its power to
think and plan. When the spear cleft
Christs side-that bought your heart with
all its power to love, and repent, and pray.
Oh, sinner. come back
If q man is in no pain, if he is propered, If
he is well, and he asks you to come, you take
your time and you say: ~ can't come now:
I'll come after awhile. There is no haste"
must 90 right away. 1 must go now" To-
day Jesus stretches out before you two
wounded hands, and He begs you to come.
Go and you live. Stay away and you die.
Oh, that to Him who bought US, we might
give all our time, and all our prayers and all
our successes! would we could think
of nothing else, that we could do nothing
else but come to Christ. he is so fair, He is
so loving, He is so sympathizing, He is so
good, wish we could put our arms around
His neck and say: ''Thine, Lord, will be
forever" Oh, that to-day you would begin
to love Him! Would that could take this
audience and wreathe it around the heart OF
my Lord Jesus Christ.
When, in 1866, the Atlantic cable was lost.
do you remember that the Great Eastern and
the Medway and the Albany went out to find
and half miles deep i'll the water. After
awhile they found the cable and brought it
to the surface. No osooner had it been brought
to the surface than they lifted shout Of ex.
ultation, but the cable slipped back again into
the water and was lost. Then for two
weeks more they swept the sea with the
grappling hooks, and at last they found the
cable and they brought it up in silence.
They fastened it this time. Then with great
excitement they took one end Of the cable to
the electricians room to see if there
were really any life in it, aud when
they saw spark and knew that a
message could be sent, then every
hat was lifted, and the rockets flew, and
the guns sounded until all the vessels on the
expedition knew the work was done and the
continents were lashed together. Well, my
friends, Sabbath after Sabbath, we have
come searching down for your soul. we
have swept the sea with the graphing
kook of Christ's gospel Again and again
we have thought you were at the surface, ana
began to rejoice over your redemption; but
at the moment Of our gladness you sank Dack
again into the world and hack again into
sin. To-day we come with this Gospel search.
ing for your soul. We apply the cross OF
Christ first to see whether there is any life
left in you, while all around the people stand,
looking to see whether the work will be done,
and the angels of God bend down and witness.
and oh, if now we could see only one spark OF
love, and hope, and faith, we would send up
a shout that would be heard on the battle
ments of heaven, and two worlds would keep
Jubilee because communication Is open De-
tween Christ and the soul, and your nature
that has been sunken in tho deep sea OF SIN
has been lifted iuto the light and the JOY OK
the GOsIAli